Can You Recycle Trainers 👟, Running Shoe Recycling Australia

Can you recycle trainers? If you are like me 👟 - you probably got a bit stir crazy during the recent Covid lockdowns. Gyms were closed and so I was looking for another way to get some exercise.

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I dusted of my old trainers and went for a jog. Shoe recycling Australia.

I should mention I had not jogged in years - and these trainers were in pretty poor condition.

The next day - my knees were very sore - and someone told me you should change running shoes roughly every three to six months.

For someone like me - who keeps clothes for years - that sounds incredibly short - and made me ask where the huge amount of old running trainers go - and if they can be recycled.

In years gone by - there basically were no shoes thrown away. Shoes would be resoled and repaired by cobblers over and over again.

Even Prince Charles has been pictured wearing 50 year old shoes. I suppose if Royalty do it - it is nothing to be ashamed of!

How big is this issue? Put simply - it is huge!

In 2018 - an estimated 24 billion pairs of shoes were produced.

It is a fact that the majority of these shoes end up in landfill globally. As many shoes are partly made from plastic - they will be decomposing for up to 1000 years.

So what are the options for recycling shoes.

First question is - are the shoes in a good condition - if so - you can simply donate them to a charity store or to an organisation like Shoesforplanetearth - linked in the notes below. This means good quality shoes will be used again.

If the shoes are worn out - it is obviously trickier.

There are other options such as Nike - Reuse a Shoe campaign at some Rebel Sports locations.

Shoesforplanetearth as mentioned previously will also accept items like shoe insoles or shoe laces.

In 2020 - another great project called the Save Our Soles Initiative has been launched by industry body ASGA and is backed by major brands such as Adidas, Rebel Sports, New Balance and Asics.

They plan to develop a scalable solution for sports shoe recycling in Australia - and have already rolled out a pilot program in Victoria. We link to the website in the notes below.

Act 4-

As much as I hate throwing away old shoes - I realise that my knees will not forgive me.

Until running shoes are longer lasting - we will have a waste and recycling issue in Australia due to shoes.

It is great news that Programs such as Save Our Soles and Shoesforplanetearth are expanding - we encourage you to use them whenever possible.

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Of course - I bought new running shoes and never used them! Need to go for a run now!